Follow the author of this article

Follow the topics within this article

My children have been living wild in a forest for three days. They’ve been making fire, building shelters, tracking badgers and sleeping under the stars. Every time I imagine them out there in the woods - deprived of their screens, hot running water, and the fridge - I’m torn between guilt and delight. My 14-year-old was particularly resistant to the prospect of adventure and bushcraft at Camp Wilderness; he’d explained that he couldn’t go, as he was scared of spiders.

But while video games - my kids’ favourite addiction - always cause frustration, tears, and rage, there’s increasing scientific proof, as if we didn’t already suspect, that spending time in nature soothes and de-stresses. Our...

Register for free to read this article, or log in to your Telegraph account